Chapter 16: A Run of Bad Luck

At the entrance of Shili Village, Hao Li woke everyone up.

Hua Yuanyuan wasn’t embarrassed at all; she was still sleepy, her eyes blurry with tears.

Yawning slightly, she looked like she hadn’t gotten enough sleep.

“The tile-roofed house in the southwest corner.”

After speaking, she couldn’t help but yawn again.

On the train, the three of them were tense. Even if they had taken a bus, they wouldn’t have been able to relax.

Hao Li’s military uniform provided a sense of security, putting the three of them at ease.

Once they relaxed, the fatigue accumulated over the past few days surfaced.

After moving their luggage into the house, Hua Youcai enthusiastically saw Hao Li off.

It was really convenient to travel by car; they arrived after a good night’s sleep.

Hua Youcai closed the large door and looked around the large courtyard.

This house was surprisingly nice; they had expected a small, dilapidated house like their own.

Unexpectedly, it was a brand-new large tile-roofed house. The trip was worthwhile.

A large black wooden door, high walls made of red bricks, six north-facing rooms—it was spacious.

Everything looked good; his daughter had excellent taste.

Inside, Hua Fangfang excitedly chattered non-stop, “Sister, this house is so big!”

“Sister, sister, why is this room so bright?”

“Sister, when we have money, let’s build one like this, too?”

…

The three Hua brothers from Beijing were happily cleaning their new home when, far away in the northeast in Xinghua Village, they became the talk of the town.

After breakfast that day, Hua Youwei went to his third brother’s house for a visit. Before he even entered the house, he noticed something was wrong as soon as he entered the courtyard.

The snow had stopped the previous evening. The three brothers had locked the door that morning and hadn’t been back since.

There were large, messy footprints in the yard, indicating someone had been there.

Hua Youwei went back and called Hua Youde and Hua Youzhi, along with the younger generation. Armed with hoes, sticks, and shovels, they returned to the third brother’s house.

Hua Youzhi frowned, “Did someone really break in?”

Hua Youde looked around, “Over there, they entered from there.”

The footprints showed how they had broken through the fence.

Arriving at the door, they lifted the straw curtain that blocked the wind, revealing a wide-open door…

“Big brother, it’s terrible!”

“Those bastards!”

“So scary!”

…

It was a close call. If the third brother and his family hadn’t left, and had stayed there last night, it’s hard to say what would have happened.

The lock was completely broken, and the kang cabinet doors were open, but nothing was missing.

They were lucky. Hua Youcai had always been lucky since he was a child; it couldn’t be denied.

The thief had terrible luck; he suffered from the cold for nothing and got nothing.

The intruder, unable to find anything, angrily tossed the few pieces of furniture around.

When the large group arrived, villagers followed behind to watch the commotion.

The New Year was just a few days away. With nothing much to do, people visited each other and gossiped.

Many people were watching the Hua family, and Dongzi often lingered near the Hua family’s house.

He just wanted to chat, but he was unlucky and rarely encountered them.

“What happened?”

“Hey? Where are the third uncle and his family?”

“Xiao Fang isn’t here either?”

“Where’s Hua Yuanyuan?”

…

More and more people gathered. Hua Youzhi stepped forward and told everyone that the third brother had taken his daughter and son to visit relatives.

When asked where they went and who their relatives were, Hua Youzhi chuckled, “They’re not relatives from our side; they’re relatives from my third sister-in-law’s side. I don’t know them.”

…

The three Hua brothers had moved all the vegetables and grain from the third brother’s cellar to the eldest brother’s house the previous day.

They had minimized their losses.

The onlookers went directly from the Hua family’s house to the Wang family’s. When Wang Changjiang learned that Hua Yuanyuan had gone to visit relatives, his expression was unpleasant.

Hua Yuanyuan’s mother had died a long time ago, and he had never heard of any relatives on that side.

For some reason, his first thought was of the house he had been looking at in Beijing.

Intuition. His intuition was usually very accurate.

Matchmakers had already visited the Wang family in the past few days. Wang Changjiang wouldn’t look for someone like Hua Yuanyuan again, but he didn’t refuse to meet other women.

He would just say that they didn’t have chemistry or weren’t suitable, and reject them.

This time, he wanted someone who had a job in the city.

The gossip about Hua Yuanyuan in Xinghua Village spread like wildfire.

“Hua Laosan took his daughter to visit relatives to avoid the trouble; they couldn’t stay in the village anymore.”

“Captain Wang didn’t want her, so she made a fuss.”

“Hua Yuanyuan got divorced, and she can’t find anyone like Captain Wang…”

“Hua Yuanyuan’s looks show she’s a jinx; Captain Wang wouldn’t want her.”

…

In a blink of an eye, it was the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month. Over the past two days, the three Hua brothers had thoroughly cleaned the house and put everything in order.

Hua Youcai and his son lived in the three eastern rooms, and Hua Yuanyuan lived in the three western rooms.

The father and son slept in the easternmost room. The adjacent outer room was the kitchen, with a large stove and a furnace.

The third room was empty and used for storage.

Hua Yuanyuan lived in the fourth room from the east. The door opened directly into the eastern rooms.

This door could be locked, so one could also go around to the east from outside.

The outer room on the west side was her washroom, with a water jar and a large iron pot.

They didn’t cook there; they only used it to heat the kang at night.

The westernmost room was Hua Yuanyuan’s storage room for miscellaneous items.

The rooms were all cleaned up in these two days. After breakfast today, the three of them went to town to go to the market.

Hua Youcai had visited the landlord yesterday, chatting with Old Man Wang for a long time.

He had inquired about everything he needed to know: the location of the village’s supply and marketing cooperative, nearby markets, their schedules, and the transportation to the city. Old Man Wang was very enthusiastic.

Even more conveniently, Old Man Wang had just opened a small shop, run by his son.

Hua Youcai bought soy sauce, vinegar, matches, and candles. Old Man Wang was very pleased with his patronage.

The three of them walked quickly, arriving in town slightly sweaty.

There were many people on the road: some walking, some riding bicycles, some riding three-wheeled bicycles, and some riding ox carts.

The market was the same as their hometown, with stalls lining both sides of the main street.

They sold couplets, firecrackers, and various New Year’s goods, as well as vegetables grown by the villagers, mostly cabbage and radishes.

The market wasn’t very big; they reached the end in no time.

Hua Youcai also went to the post office to send a telegram to his eldest brother, reporting their safety.

He would write a letter after the New Year.

Cabbage cost three cents a pound, while white radishes and carrots cost two cents each.

Hua Youcai carried a basket of cabbage, Hua Fangfang carried a basket of radishes, and Hua Yuanyuan carried couplets, firecrackers, and candy in a cloth bag.

In the morning, they went to the market. In the afternoon, Hua Yuanyuan assigned a task to her father and brother:

To borrow a bicycle from the landlord and learn how to ride.

Bicycles were valuable items. What if they didn’t lend them one?

Hua Fangfang was worried. If they couldn’t borrow one, they couldn’t learn how to ride.

Hua Yuanyuan had planned for her father and brother to learn how to ride first, so they could ride home directly after buying one in the city.

Of course, she could ride, but she would also pretend to learn after buying a bicycle.

Hua Fangfang’s words reminded her that it wasn’t necessary.

Could bicycles be taken on buses at this time?

If not, they could push it back while learning. It wasn’t difficult for adults to learn to ride a bicycle.

Hua Youcai thought he should ask; it wouldn’t hurt to try. He took a bag of melon seeds and peanuts, all homegrown.

Arriving at Old Man Wang’s small shop, Hua Youcai explained that he wanted to borrow a bicycle, and Old Man Wang readily agreed.